Microsoft it pro cloud essentials

These newly discovered security vulnerabilities are serious, but not a reason to panic. Credit: ThamKC/ShutterstockIT administrators always have a million things on their plate. But nothing throws off the whole operation of a company's technology like a major security vulnerability. Spectre and Meltdown have caught the attention of much of the tech world since the announcement by security researchers that they were a serious matter. For organizations that deploy mobile devices and PCs, such a revelation can be troubling. Updating devices is often a cumbersome process, and ensuring that everyone in an organization is using best security practices often takes enough time and training even without getting everybody up to speed on a security breach. MORE: Best Information Security Certifications The essential details Not all the news surrounding Meltdown and Spectre is dire, however. For starters, the security experts have been quick to note that there are no known use of the exploits … [Read more...] about What IT Pros Need to Know About Spectre and Meltdown

Microsoft is continuing its campaign to get more IT pros to go cloud by introducing two new resource programs. The company unveiled the free programs -- Microsoft IT Pro Cloud Essentials and the Microsoft IT Pro Career Center -- on April 20. IT Pro Cloud Essentials is an annual subscription program for those looking to get started with the cloud with access to services, training and support. Included resources: Free Azure credits to try cloud scenarios like backup, disaster recovery, security & dev/test. Free Pluralsight subscription for on-line training. Free Priority support in the TechNet forums. A free phone support incident for Azure or on-premises products. A free certification exam voucher. Extended trials of Enterprise Mobility Suite and Office 365. Microsoft IT Pro Career Center is for those looking to advance their careers via cloud. The Career Center includes: Info for mapping your IT cloud role. Learning curriculum for your chosen cloud role. Info on discovering … [Read more...] about Microsoft rolls out new programs to incent IT pros to go cloud

Technology is changing constantly. It would be a challenge for anyone to stay current with all the technologies available today. As with most IT professionals, though, you may have the need to stay current in your present role or you may be transitioning to a new role. This is especially relevant for IT professionals whose organizations are migrating - or even considering a migration - to cloud resources. Cloud technologies are evolving constantly, and forward-looking companies are embracing operational models like DevOps so their IT and dev teams remain agile and flexible in rapidly changing conditions. If you iterate quickly, automate wherever possible, and maintain a healthy pace of continuous improvement, you're well-positioned to thrive. Even the trend is growing quickly. Back in 2015 (a century ago by cloud standards), Gartner predicted that it would take one year for DevOps to evolve from a niche strategy to a mainstream strategy in use among 25 percent of Global 2000 … [Read more...] about IT Training Choices in a Fast-Paced World

Microsoft is betting on the cloud to provide the next wave of innovation and opportunities for technologists, businesses and consumers. CEO Steve Ballmer has said that the vendor is “all in” for the cloud, which potentially represents a $3.3 trillionmarket. But where does its cloud computing platform stand today? To gauge Microsoft’s cloud momentum, check out our latest news stories, product reports and user adoption stories. [ For complete coverage of the Cloud Apps Wars -- including a complete guide to the business war, the competing products including GoogleDocs and Office 2010, the implications for users and IT, and more -- see CIO.com's CloudApps Wars Bible. ]Executive commitmentsMicrosoft emphasizes hybrid cloud at TechEdAs the technology industry moves toward the cloud, users can ease the transition by adopting a hybrid computing model, said Bob Muglia, Microsoft's president of servers and tools. "We're creating the precursors for the cloud. Today there is a … [Read more...] about Where Microsoft Stands on Cloud Computing

The Microsoft Surface Pro 4 has satisfied one expectation: It’s taken the proven success of the Surface Pro 3 and gone even further, offering a substantial performance boost and other improvements.Now comes the harder part. The tablet ecosystem has dramatically evolved since the launch of the Surface Pro 3. New Surface clones like the Lenovo Miix 700 and the Vaio Canvas will ship soon. Then there’s the Surface Pro 4's flashy new family member: the Surface Book, a two-in-one boasting incredible battery life and a pricey external GPU option. Suddenly the Surface Pro 4 is simply machina sapiena, and the Book is machina maxima.The Surface Pro 4 may have to resign itself to living in the shadow of the Surface Book. As for the rest of the new competition, the Surface Pro 4’s impressive features, performance, and overall experience have set some tough new standards for high-end Windows tablets in. We’ll see if any of them can meet the … [Read more...] about Microsoft Surface Pro 4 review: It’s faster, it’s better, and it has more competition

Here's a time-saver for IT executives swamped by last-minute budget cuts and end-of-the-year performance reviews: We've written your 2009 goals for you, with our list of nine websites you need to study during the next 12 months.This list is not for geeks. It’s for IT professionals of a certain age, who don’t spend every waking hour online but needto keep up with the latest innovations on the Internet.Master these websites, and you’ll prove you can innovate during the most trying economic times. And you’ll do it more efficientlythan your 20-something employees, who waste too much time chasing the new, new thing on the Internet that may not survivethe downturn. 1. Linked InForget Facebook. In the last six months, LinkedIn has become the de rigueur Web 2.0 site for IT professionals. LinkedIn has 30 million members,almost double what it had a year ago. And it raised more than $75 million in venture capital during 2008, so it has stayingpower. It has a host of new … [Read more...] about 9 Websites IT Pros Should Master in 2009

At TechRepublic Live 2011, Dr. Tom Shinder, of the Microsoft Private Cloud Solutions Team, gave a presentation with this intriguing title:How Windows 8 enables IT Pros to implement private cloudThe hashtag for the Twitter feed for TechRepublic Live 2011 is #TRLive2011.The private cloud is not server virtualization — read that again — a very important point.Essential characteristics of the private cloud include (NIST):broad network accessresource poolingrapid elasticitymeasured serviceThere are three service models important to the private cloud:Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)Platform as a Service (PaaS)Software as a Service (SaaS)The benefits of cloud computing include:lower up-front expensesexpenditure moved from capital expenditures to operational expendituresbetter provisioning, utilization, and elasticitymetered usageenhanced security by economies of scaleMicrosoft has established guidelines to support the evolution of cloud infrastructure called … [Read more...] about Windows 8 will enable IT pros to implement the private cloud

Most of the IT professionals I know scoff or snicker when I bring up the topic of Google Chrome OS. But, just as IT pros used to roundly dismiss the idea of cloud computing — and many of them are now climbing over each other to tout their cloud and virtualization expertise — it might not be long before IT also warms up to Chrome OS, out of necessity.On Wednesday at Google I/O 2011, Google unveiled Chromebooks and the Chromebooks for Business program. Google made a hard sell for its cloud-based PC platform and for the new business program that will allow businesses to rent Chromebooks for a low monthly cost per user.Google claims that by deploying Chromebooks instead of traditional PCs, companies can reduce the total cost of ownership for business computers by 70%. That's a whopping number and we're still trying to figure out where Google came up with that amount, but most of it is based on eliminating PC management tasks — security, software patches, … [Read more...] about While IT pros scoff, Google Chromebooks will likely seduce businesses

Now that the cloud is core to Microsoft, it wants IT pros who are sticking with familiar server technologies to get cozy with services such as Azure.Consumers might have most of their apps and data in the cloud, but for big corporations in-house IT systems, operated by a team of IT pros, are still the norm.Microsoft has historically been good at selling products to these IT pros, but it's finding that many of them aren't ready for the direction it's been taking with Azure, Office 365 and Windows as a service.To change that situation, Microsoft has created a new training program called IT Pro Cloud Essentials, which aims to help IT pros update their skills for the cloud. To entice them to join, Microsoft is offering up Azure credits, free online training, free tech support and extended trials of Office 365 and its BYOD product, Enterprise Mobility Suite (EMS)."Over the past 20 years there have been many technology transitions led by IT professionals. With each technology … [Read more...] about Microsoft touts free stuff to lure server-leaning IT pros to its cloud

The modern enterprise workforce is a mobile workforce, and it has been that way for some time now. However, in just the past few years, the tools and devices that mobile workforce has had at its disposal have become lighter, slimmer, and much more powerful.A prime example of these new thin, yet powerful, notebook/tablet hybrid computers is the Microsoft Surface Pro 4, which is available in several configurations spanning a wide range of prices. This guide looks at the essential details of the Surface Pro 4. What it is: The Microsoft Surface Pro 4 is the exemplar hybrid notebook/tablet computer, ranging in price from $899 to $2,699, depending on configuration. Why it matters: The Surface Pro 4 establishes a market example for powerful computers designed to be used by a modern mobile workforce from the ground up. Who it affects: Any enterprise dependent on a mobile workforce needs to supply that workforce with the best and most powerful tools. When it's happening: The Surface … [Read more...] about Microsoft Surface Pro 4: The smart person’s guide